U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled “Operation Economic Outcast” on Monday, imposing new sanctions on nearly 60 Iran-linked entities, individuals and vessels across the regime’s oil, nuclear, missile and cyber networks in what he called “the greatest financial offensive ever marshalled against an adversary.”
The campaign, which Bessent compared to the World War II D-Day landings, marks a significant escalation of Washington’s economic pressure on Tehran. Five new sectoral determinations substantially expand U.S. sanctions authority, allowing penalties on any person or entity operating in Iran’s digital assets, technology, gold, aviation or shipping sectors.
“Treasury has mapped every node, every facilitator, and every network that Iran has used to smuggle oil and evade sanctions,” Bessent said. “Beginning today, the actions of Treasury and other agencies will tighten the noose and block every potential source of revenue that funds the IRGC and the evil Iranian regime.”
China in the Crosshairs
China, which purchases roughly 90 percent of Iran’s crude oil exports, faces growing exposure under the expanded secondary sanctions framework. Foreign firms conducting Iran-related business could now face exclusion from the U.S. dollar system, a threat that carries outsized weight for Chinese banks and trading houses that handle Tehran’s oil transactions through small independent refineries and shadow-fleet vessels.
Beijing responded cautiously. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China-Iran cooperation “should not be disrupted or undermined,” noting it conforms with international law. The warning came as President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping prepare for a Washington summit next month, adding a volatile new dimension to already tense trade negotiations.
Iran’s Economy Under Severe Strain
The sanctions come as Iran’s economy shows deepening distress. The rial collapsed to a record low of nearly 1.4 million to the U.S. dollar on Monday, while annual inflation hit 88 percent in July. Trump declared on Truth Social that “Iran is completely collapsing!”
Iranian officials pushed back sharply. Mohsen Rezaee, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, warned that any nation joining what he called America’s “economic war against the Iranian people” would be treated as an act of war, and threatened to shut down oil traffic through the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz. President Masoud Pezeshkian defended the June memorandum of understanding with the United States, calling it the most viable path for resolving a situation he described as “neither war nor peace.”
Bessent said the Treasury plans to announce a major sanction against a financial institution by the end of the week, signaling the campaign is still in its opening phase.
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